[ ♪ theme ] >> bill: hey, good morning, everybody! friday, august 9. can you believe it? good to see you today. thank you for joining us here on the "full court press," coming to you live on current tv, all across this great land of ours. wherever you happen to be, we are there for you and wherever the news is happening this morning, we're on it. we've got it covered. we'll tell you all about it and give you a chance to comment about it yourself. let us know what you think at

1-866-55-press. that's our toll free number and also you can join us on twitter. of course, at bpshow. and we want you to be our friend on facebook. join us on facebook at facebook.com/billpressshow. big day today for the first time, president obama's going to sign the student loan bill and then for the first time since april 30, he's going to hold a news conference in the reist room of the white house. yes, you bet, i will be there. and we can expect questions to the president on edward snowden, on drones, on the nsa, on immigration reform, on syria, and why he is giving the medal of freedom to oprah winfrey. i think she deserves it but still get a question about that. in other news, georgia republicans say that they actually thing more highly of paula deen than of martin luther king jr. chuck todd and andrea mitchell condemn nbc's plan to do a mini

series on hillary clinton. lots going on this friday morning. we'll tell you all about it right here. to the fire. are you encouraged by what you heard the president say the other night? is this personal, or is it political? a lot of my work happens by doing the things that i'm given to doing anyway, by staying in touch with everything that is going on politically and putting my own nuance on it. in reality it's not like they actually care. this is purely about political grandstanding. i've worn lots of hats, but i've always kept this going. i've been doing politics now for a dozen years. (vo) he's been called the epic politics man. he's michael shure and his arena is the war room. >> these republicans in congress that think the world ends at the atlantic ocean border and pacific ocean border. the bloggers and the people that are sort of compiling the best of the day. i do a lot of looking at those people as well. not only does senator rubio just care about rich people, but somehow he thinks raising the minimum wage is a bad idea for

the middle class. but we do care about them right?

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>> occupy! >> we will have class warfare. (vo) true stories, current perspective. documentaries. on current tv. >> announcer: broadcasting across the nation on your radio and on current tv, this is the "bill press show." >> bill: president obama calling a news conference this afternoon for 3:00 at the white house. before he goes on vacation, taking questions from reporters. i will be there. hey, what do you say? can you believe it? it's friday! [ ♪ alleluia ] [ ♪ alleluia ]

>> bill: it is our favorite day around the "bill press show." >> cyprian got too excited. the camera showed cyprian, he was so excited, he dropped the phone. he swivelled around in his chair. >> it is a big day. >> we're all cyprian today. i feel like you do. >> bill: we go crazy on fridays. great to see you today. happy friday wherever you happen to be. august 9, it is a good day here. we're ready to tackle the big stories of the day. lots going on. lots of crazy stuff to talk about today. you're going to love it for the next three hours. we'll tell you what's going on and then open it up to phones and the internet and take your comments by phone at 1-866-55-press. on twitter at bpshow and on facebook at facebook.com/billpressshow. be our friend. befriend us on facebook. so the team here ready to go this morning, peter ogborn and

dan henning. >> hey, hey, hey. >> good morning. >> bill: with the aforementioned cyprian bowlding who has the cameras covered when he's not jumping around. alichia cruz has the phones covered as well. everybody is eager to get into the weekend here. >> punchy. >> bill: indeed, a little punchy. a sirius update for you this morning. a serious powerball update. one of the winners came forward yesterday from minnesota. good for him. and here's another winner. >> powerball. you still lost money because you bought $6 worth. >> bill: yesterday i reported i had bought three tickets, $6 and i got the powerball so i got $4 back. [ applause ] i went over to easter market to turn in my ticket and i've never done this before. they take your ticket and there is a little reader. >> they scan it. >> bill: it scans it and it tells you -- she said oh, you

have $4 then she took my other two tickets. >> your losers. >> bill: yeah. so i got the powerball but on this one, i had three numbers. so that means, she said you get $11 back. >> whoa! wow. >> bill: i made $5. how about that. >> have you dreamed what you would do with that money? >> bill: what's his name? paul white. ♪ >> bill: he said he was going to put his kids through college, buy a new house, buy a new car. i haven't figured out what i'm going to do with my $11. >> i'm surprised you showed up for work this morning. you hit it big. >> bill: from now on, man, every ticket, win or lose, i'm going to take them in and have them scan them. >> i think i lost but i want you to tell me. >> bill: i want to know for sure. i was surprised. there it is.

>> here i thought you lost money on it. >> bill: got a big weekend coming up. >> look out, carol! >> bill: big weekend. i gotta tell you, i was going to sit back and maybe watch that hillary documentary on nbc. i'm not sure we're going to see it now. i've never seen this before but people on the network, nbc network and msnbc are coming out -- we've told you about this plan that first of all, the republican national committee raised hell about with the hillary documentary and because they were going to do four hour mini series on hillary. cnn is doing the documentary. on nbc, two people on the air have come forward say this is a big mistake. political director chuck todd. uh-huh. >> this is why this mini series is a total nightmare because it doesn't -- we know there's this giant firewall. we know we have nothing to do with it. we would love to be as critical or whatever it is going to be if

it comes out but there's nothing we can do about it. we're going to only own the negative because people are going to see the peacock and they see nbc and nbc news and they think well, they can't be that separate. >> bill: he said that yesterday morning on morning joe. that's mica there. it is nbc entertainment that would produce the mini series but people are going to say this political gang at nbc and they're supposedly neutral. uh-huh. then andrea mitchell yesterday afternoon surprised me. she usually doesn't get into political commentary. she was talking with robert gibbs, former press secretary, she doesn't like it either. >> a documentary, an entertainment film which is, you know, all about -- >> a bad idea? >> a movie. >> a lot of newspeople would say including nbc and chuck todd, a really bad idea given the timing. >> bill: a bad idea given the timing. it will be interesting to see if they go ahead with this. more and more, i think it is a

mistake for them to do it because if she still has a possibility of running for office, then it puts nbc in her camp. as much as i love her and i'm her supporter, that's not what the networks ought to be doing. >> i wonder if they could get away with putting it on one of their other owned stations like bravo or universal? >> they've done that before. >> bill: it would be better. >> they were going to do a reagan movie that they were going to have on -- i forget which -- it ended up going somewhere else. i think chuck todd made a good point yesterday when he said hillary's political career might not be done. she hasn't retired. still very active. people are still throwing her name around a lot so why not do a documentary on someone who has accomplished what they're going to accomplish and stepped out of politics. >> bill: do the mini series on bill clinton. one of our guests yesterday from

now this news, julie eckert, made the point that -- try to put yourself in the other person's shoes to see this. i'll be flat out honest, right, if nbc were doing a four-hour mini series on marco rubio, i would be personally picketing in front of 30 rock in new york and raising holy hell on this show. all right. hey, we've got susan page from "usa today." eric burns will be here from bullfight strategies as a "friend of bill" a little bit later and will dobson from slate on what's going on with the putin nonsummit. but first -- >> this is the "full court press." >> quick check of other headlines making news on this friday. eight in ten americans say congress does not deserve the five-week recess that it is currently on. >> bill: what's wrong with the other? >> republicans on both sides of

the -- respondents on both sides of the i'll greed congress should not have the long vacation but when asked about the president's one-week vacation that starts this weekend, 48% said he deserves it. 48% say he doesn't deserve it. 80% of democrats say he deserves it. 23% of republicans. >> bill: you know what? give me a break. listen. here's the deal. this is terrible that barack obama is going to martha's vineyard. george bush went to that stupid ranch for the entire month of august! what did republicans say? he works hard. he deserves a break. give me a -- get off my back. get off his back. >> as you alluded to -- >> congress, no. >> they doesn't deserve time

with their families, bill? >> bill: not as much as they get. >> one winner of this week's massive powerball jackpot came forward yesterday in minnesota. paul white is a 45-year-old project engineer. his share, $86 million in cash before taxes so he'll take home just under $60 million after it is all said and done. he told the media -- >> bill: i saw $149. >> that's the annuitized value. the cash option is an $86 million. >> bill: only $60 some mill? >> after taxes. >> bill: i could go through that in a weekend. >> he told media -- first purchase will be an early 1990s acura that he's been eyeing on craigslist for a few months. [ laughter ] a car with about 12,000 miles on it. it is a sports car that's no longer made worth $30,000. that's what it costs. >> bill: you know what?

go for it. >> it is like a -- >> he won the lottery. and he's going to buy an acura? an old acura? >> bill: whatever floats your boat. >> sure, man. okay. >> bill: we got it. thank you, dan. big news on the medical front today. big news in the pot wars. you know, i know, i'm an old pothead. it is a favorite topic of ours around here. but we are making progress and what came out yesterday is really stunning because i mean the whole thing, we know how ridiculous the pot laws are today. particularly at the federal level. any possession, any use. it is a federal crime. and in most states today, you can still get busted for even a possession of a small amount and use of a small amount and there are too many cops, too many judges, too many prison guards,

too many court clerks and bailiffs and all of that stuff who are tied up in this stupid prosecution of pot laws, a substance that, as far as i'm concerned, should be totally legal. there are some organizations that have been working to relax and change our marijuana laws, very effectively. making a lot of progress. normal. we usually have allen st. pierre in here, executive director of normal. and last week, we had, as a guest, the former -- former baltimore police officer and the head of leap law enforcement against prohibition again, telling us that the prohibition laws don't work. and cops ought to be freed up to be pursuing violent crime and get away from having to enforce the pot laws. one of the reasons the laws have been on the books as long as they have and we haven't had a change is because the medical community has been very slow,

even in recognizing medical marijuana. there are 20 states today plus the district of columbia where the use of medical marijuana is legal. here in the district of columbia as we pointed out. this is recent for washington. just opening now the first medical marijuana dispensaries including one right over there. right across the street from us. walked by it last night. big crowd outside. right over the popeye's chicken which we love. >> no more perfect place. >> there is a starbucks on the corner. >> shapingry la for -- shangry law for pot stickers.

so many say this is dangerous including and above all, cnn's chief medical correspondent dr. sanjay gupta who is a good guy but has always been down on pot. medical marijuana is a big mistake. yesterday, he came out and he said "i was wrong." here he is talking to piers morgan on cnn night before last. >> i have. and as part of my thinking, i have apologized for some of the earlier reporting because i think we've been terribly and systematically misled. part of that misleading. >> bill: he said i did part of that misleading. she said you know, the research is out there but i didn't take the time to do the research

myself. i believed what the fed said. they were lying. >> i didn't look at labs in other country doing research. i didn't look at the chorus of patients who said not only does marijuana work for me, it is the only thing that works for me. i took the d.e.a. at their word when they said it was a skulled substance -- it was a schedule one substance. there was no basis for them to say that. >> bill: that is stunning to hear him say that. he took the d.e.a. at their word and they had zero scientific evidence to back up their statements that marijuana -- that medical marijuana was dangerous. there are so many stories and so many examples of people who get -- the only relief they can get, particularly, you know, a lot of people with terminal diseases and everything is from smoking pot. the idea that you would prohibit that is just -- you know, it is just unchristian as far as i'm

concerned. un-american. it is just wrong. good for sanjay gupta for coming out. think of all of the years that we have -- people have said -- sanjay is against it. by the way, there are still in nay-sayers out there. the mayo clinic is still opposed to medical marijuana and mikey bloomberg of all people in new york has called medical marijuana one of the greatest hoaxes of all-time. he sounds like james inhofe on climate change. you would think that bloomberg who is pretty smart, particularly on these health issues, maybe it is because you smoke it and he's got such a thing about smoking. i don't know. >> you have to love doctors though because doctors sort of look at data, right? they're not really -- there's not really an agenda with doctors. they're not beholden to any party. they look at data and what works and what gets things done. >> bill: they're supposed to look at data. the point is sanjay gupta admits he didn't look at the data.

he just believed what the government was saying. one more example. you can't believe what the freaking government tells you about everything. maybe not anything. 1-866-55-press. kind of like rand paul. 1-866-55-press. what do you think? is it time? is it time to just -- just change the laws, not only about medical marijuana but for recreational use of marijuana. we know colorado and washington, the only two states that have done it. it is time that sanjay gupta leads the way. let's talk about it here on the "full court press" this morning. >> follow us on twitter at bpshow. this is the "bill press show." converstion started next. >> i'm a slutty bob hope. >> you are. >> the troops love me. the sweatshirt is nice and all, but i could use a golden lasso. (vo) only on current tv.

if you believe in state's rights but still support the drug war you must be high. >> "viewpoint" digs deep into the issues of the day. >> do you think there is any chance we'll ever hear the president even say the word "carbon tax"? >> with an opened mind... >> has the time finally come for real immigration reform? >> ...and a distinctly satirical point of view. >> but you mentioned great leadership so i want to talk about donald rumsfeld. >> (laughter)

>> cutting throught the clutter of today's top stories. >> this is the savior of the republican party? i mean really? >> ... with a unique perspective. >> teddy rosevelt was a weak asmatic kid who never played sports until he was a grown up. >> (laughter) >> ... and lots of fancy buz words. >> family values, speding, liberty, economic freedom, hard-working moms, crushing debt, cute little puppies. if wayne lapierre can make up stuff that sounds logical while making no sense... hey, so can i. once again friends, this is live tv and sometimes these things happen. >> watch the show. >> only on current tv.

>> announcer: this is the "bill press show." >> bill: talking about sanjay gupta, dr. sanjay gupta from cnn saying he's been wrong all this time about medical marijuana. by the way, he pointed out in an op-ed he wrote that 70% of americans take prescription drugs, right? 70% of americans. every 19 minutes, there is a case of overdose on prescription drugs. he could not find one case of anybody overdosing on medical marijuana. but every 19 minutes, overdose on prescription drugs. kim calling from modesto, california. hello, kim. >> caller: hey, how is the most intelligent man on the planet? >> bill: smarter than ever today. >> caller: i knew it. just wanted to say that i had a

really severe accident and i've had multiple surgeries and they had me on so many narcotics, unbelievable narcotics. and they had me on 32 pills a day. >> bill: oh! >> caller: i took it from 32 to 4 because i've been doing medical marijuana for the last 12 years and i don't think -- another thing, i don't think sanjay gupta just woke up and had an epiphany. i think he knew five years ago that pot was fine. i just don't think because the laws weren't in our favor, that he had to go with what his employer went with. >> bill: i think you may be right on that, kim. by the way, i have to say, you've been doing medical marijuana for 12 years. i think you might have been doing medical marijuana before it was legal but that's all right as far as i'm concerned. >> we won't tell. >> bill: modesto, california, coming through. have a good weekend, kim.

go time. you know what time it is. go time! it's go time. it's go time. what time is it rob? here comes the young turks go time! it's go time. oh is it? oh, then it's go time. anybody? anybody? what time is it? oh, right. it's go time!

>> announcer: live on free speech tv beginning september 3rd, visit freespeech.org to learn more. this is the "bill press show." >> bill: all right. it is 33 minutes after the hour now here on a friday morning. friday, august 9. ought to just jump in the car and head to the beach. rehoboth, just a couple of hours away. we're coming to you live from our nation's capital before we head to the beach, brought to you today by afscme, the largest public employee and healthcare worker's union in the entire

country. good men and women of afscme fighting the good fight under president lee saunders. for more information about their making america happen, go to their web site, afscme.org. we're talking about sanjay gupta who startled the medical community yesterday admitting he has been wrong all these years about medical marijuana. he says he just didn't do his research. now that he has, he knows it is good, okay, ought to be legal in all 50 states. we have a documentary about it coming up on cnn on sunday. back to your calls and your comments at 1-866-55-press in just a second. but again, want to encourage you to look into something that could save your life. emergency. it is called emergency link i.d. and think about if you were ever in an accident, god forbid, knocked unconscious, medical teams arrive. they can't communicate with you, can't find out any information about you, solve that problem

with emergency link i.d. it is a small tag you attach to your key ring or wallet or purse that tells emergency responders everything they need to know. your medical history, your meds, your allergies, your doctor's contact info and most importantly, whom to notify. that could make the difference between life and death. here's how you sign up. you go to emergencylink.com. and enter press. it is only $10 a year and you receive your i.d. kit free. again, hurry to emergencylink.com. emergencylink.com and enter press at emergencylink.com. and make sure that you are prepared at all times. peter? >> yes, indeed, follow us on twitter at bpshow. i encourage everyone to follow us there. it is a great place for you to join in the conversation that we're having about medical marijuana. steve west, a frequent hater of yours, bill -- he makes sure to chime in this morning. >> bill: there are people that hate me? >> believe it or not.

steve west is one of them. he says bill, now we know what you've been smoking. this explains a lot. and ripa -- >> bill: it has been a long time! i'm not denying that. >> it has been hours! [ laughter ] >> ripa them up says sanjay gupta is right. there's nothing wrong with medical marijuana but it is the medical crack we should be worried about. trish says bill, your show is more addictive than pot. >> bill: isn't that nice? >> so there. >> bill: by the way, medical marijuana to me is just a tiny step in the right direction. i mean i certainly think -- recreational use of pot ought to be in all 50 states. i would go beyond that to some serious drugs. let's not go crazy. alice down in atlanta, georgia. hi, alice. >> bill, i love you but i disagree with you when it comes to marijuana use as recreational

use. drugs should never be used as recreational use, especially among young people because they become reckless, as you see they do with alcohol in college. i grew up with family members that was on drugs and one of the main uses of drugs that i saw with some of my kin was use of marijuana. they didn't go to school. they dropped out. they became lazy. they wouldn't do anything because -- now, medicinal use, i have no problem with that. you're under a doctor's care and it is for a specific purpose. with limitations of quantity according to what your illness is. but when it comes to endorsing it as recreational use, i mean we can't do that. we have to be more wise -- with what we're saying to the community out there. because you don't want oxycontin looked upon -- even though medicinal use, used as a

recreational drug. >> bill: rush can do it, why can't i? >> caller: i'm sorry? >> bill: rush limbaugh can do it, why can't i? >> caller: look at rush limbaugh's brain! >> bill: first of all, let's distinguish what we're talking about here. sanjay gupta is only talking about medical marijuana, right. i think you and i agree on medical marijuana, right? >> caller: no problem with that. >> bill: that's a good first step. here's what i would tell you, rather than get in a long debate about recreational use of marijuana. and trust me, i used to smoke a lot of it, right. and i was around friends who smoked a lot of it. but some of the things they're saying about the detrimental effects and the bad effects on young people of pot generally are the same things they used to say about medical marijuana. i think, as we see what happens in colorado and we see what happens in washington, you can't

have people go crazy. you've got to teach them just like you teach them when they start drinking that this is a substance that can cause problems and you better be careful with it. but the idea that we prohibit it or ban it, just doesn't work. >> caller: well, i'm saying that kids -- they're reckless when they're starting out with things. they think -- >> bill: i know. but they're reckless when they start out with cigarettes and we haven't banned those and we haven't banned beer. >> caller: cigarettes and marijuana and things like that. we don't need that. in studies have shown that marijuana when smoking becomes a carcinogen that can cause cancer in the lungs, too. we have to be careful in what we're endorsing to our kids. >> bill: alice, here's the point here. i appreciate the call is again, so you know, we allow cigarettes. we allow beer but then marijuana, we make it against the law and we throw them in jail if they use it.

that's what's idiotic. the idea about teaching people responsibility is obviously a good idea across the board. but don't make it a crime. that's my point. andy up in wilmington, delaware. city of my birth. hi, andy. >> caller: good morning. belle haven't talked to you in a long time. >> caller: i have no problem with not resting people for smoking pot under any circumstances. there are two issues i don't hear advocates speak about at all. one is duis and the other is employers that will fire you if they find any of this stuff in your system. about six years ago, one of my kids who is 25 years old, was driving home late from a job he was working on and he was pulled over -- the cop said he was driving erratically. they made him in pennsylvania, take a blood test and they found traces of marijuana which later his lawyer said if he had been a

paroled convict, he would not have been called out on that amount of pot in his system. so he was not high from marijuana. there are employers that will fire you if you come back from disability say for a month and they do a blood test on you. so there are some issues. we might not get arrested for it but we might lose our jobs and lose our licenses for it. >> bill: those are issues we have to work through, andy, for sure. there is a question about whether you ought to be behind the wheel, right? and i would say no, of course not. you shouldn't be behind the wheel if you've had too much alcohol as well. not the same case with cigarettes. difference between them. i didn't know about the -- i'm sure you're right about the employers, too. i would hope that as part of our changing laws, that certainly if marijuana -- if the recreational

use of marijuana becomes legal as it is now in colorado and washington, i remind you, employers are not going to be able to fire you in those states if they find traces of marijuana in your blood because you're not breaking the law by using them. that comes along, i think with the territory. good point, andy. >> same reason i get to show up drunk for work every day. alcohol is legal. >> bill: that's just because i'm a wuss and i tolerate it. i could fire your ass for it. larry is calling from los angeles. >> caller: how you doin', bill? >> bill: i'm good, thanks. >> caller: just bottom line is i'm a physician. and i'm an emergency physician. i've never seen any serious health consequence, accident, loss of life, ever associated with the use of marijuana, ever. >> bill: you're not just talking about medical marijuana,

you're talking about across the board. >> i'm talking about across the board. i'm not saying that kids should go out and get high, et cetera. i'm not advocating the use of any type of intoxicant in a young individual. but bottom line is i went to georgetown university in washington, d.c. and when i was a medical student, you know, i was the crazy californian and we were visited by one of the undersecretaries of the old department of health, who gave us the drug talk so to speak. i stood up and said i've been a med student on the wards now for about two weeks and all i see are people who are -- who have been ravaged by the ills of alcohol and cigarettes. and he had absolutely no response. >> bill: wow. >> caller: you know, it's all --

you know, it's all, as i call it, kind of santa claus communism, the ills of we've been inculcated with the ills of marijuana now for a hundred years. >> bill: you know what, larry. i so appreciate hearing from you and it is voices like yourself and voices like sanjay gupta we need to hear more. i encourage you and i can tell you're not one to be shy. i encourage you to speak out among your fellow medical professionals and in the community and get that word out there and voices like yourself, much more sane policies about use of marijuana in this country. thank you, larry. thank you all for your calls. susan page is standing by, the washington bureau chief for "usa today." lots to talk to her about today. >> announcer: this is the "bill press show."

we have a big big hour and the iq will go way up. (vo) current tv gets the converstion started weekdays at 9am eastern. >> i'm a slutty bob hope. >> you are. >> the troops love me. (vo) tv and radio talk show host stephanie miller rounds out current's morning news block. >> you're welcome current tv audience for the visual candy. just be grateful current tv does not come in smellivision. the sweatshirt is nice and all, but i could use a golden lasso. (vo) only on current tv. >> "viewpoint" digs deep into the issues of the day. >> has the time finally come for real immigration reform? >> with a distinctly satirical point of view. if you believe in state's rights but still believe in the drug war, you must be high. >> only on current tv.

>> announcer: the "bill press show" is joining free speech tv on september 3rd. find out how to watch at billpressshow.com. >> bill: 12 minutes before the top of the hour on a friday. there's lots going on today. including president obama holding the news conference this afternoon at the white house at 3:00 p.m. eastern. these are the days that people like susan page and i look forward to. hello, susan, good morning. >> good morning, bill. not to mention it's friday. >> bill: washington bureau chief of "usa today" at usatoday.com. how about this. first news conference since april 30. you get the impression the president doesn't really like these. >> you know, you do -- he and

other politicians don't seem to want to talk to reporters. you had reince priebus, the rnc chairman also talking about not doing debates on the next round with nbc and cnn so i actually -- i think is great the president is doing a news conference. and lots of questions to ask him about. >> bill: oh, yeah, lot of stuff today. i want to ask you, susan, as a veteran leading washington journalist, what did you think when you heard that "the washington post" had been sold? >> my jaw dropped. i was stunned. and as i think most people were. i think -- you know, for an organization devoted to finding out secrets, the post managed to keep this secret pretty close. >> bill: absolutely. do you think jeff bezos, do you think there is a future for "the washington post" or is this the end of it? >> i don't think it is the end of "the washington post." in fact, i think all of us who love journalism and i know that includes you and me, hope that

there are going to be ways to support, to financially support the kind of journalism the "the post" has done for decades. if he has some new approaches, i say that's great. >> bill: i think so, too. i'm hopeful. in fact, a plug. my column is up at billpressshow.com. which i did yesterday on "the chicago tribune" of all of the news that's not in print. i think jeff bezos will lead us in directions we never maybe even thought of. >> that's great. we've had this kind of rough patch for the news business and we're all trying to figure out the ways to engage readers and to inform people and to continue to do the kind of surveillance and watch dog journalism that's so important. >> bill: a related media story is the flap over plans by nbc to do a mini series on hillary and cnn to do a documentary on hillary.

i thought it extraordinary that both chuck todd and andrea mitchell came out yesterday and said this is a bad idea for nbc. >> a bad idea and something they made clear they had nothing to do with and had no control over. you know, of course we all face this occasionally with the division between the news pages and the editorial page and newspapers and online. and the fact that they're separate and you can't hold one responsible for the other. but this has clearly caused some consternation. >> bill: rightly so, don't you think? she is a -- a major news figure. hugely successful. worthy of a documentary. but it does put -- seem to put the network in her camp, right? >> assuming -- you assume the documentary will be positive. documentaries -- the good documentaries are neither -- on public figures -- are multidimensional, right? >> bill: yes. >> and i guess i feel that you

can't stop it, right? you're going to have -- hillary clinton, the clintons generally very rich ground for all kinds of story telling. so what you need to do is make sure that people understand divisions between entertainment divisions and news divisions. i guess i'm not -- i don't think there is a way to quash the idea that people will do things about hillary clinton. >> bill: one of the most interesting things i read this week is your interview with richard trump ca. he sees there is a problem with union membership, particularly declining. >> this was so interesting. i interviewed him over at the afl-cio headquarters which does have washington's best view of the white house. >> bill: absolutely! >> he's talking about, at their convention, their convention next month in los angeles, talking about opening the afl-cio to membership by nonunions, by groups like the sierra club and the naacp.

what a shift that is. i asked him if there were those in the afl-cio who oppose the idea and he said yes but what we've been doing for 30 years isn't working. we need to do something different. >> bill: which i thought was a very candid observation on his part. membership in unions is declining. it is down to about 11% of the workforce. >> 11.3% last year. that's almost half of the percentage of the workforce that it was 30 years ago. so that is a really precipitous decline. >> bill: he's looking for ways to involve more people, right? and reaching out which i think is tremendous. they've got to do that. >> we would provide a kind of liberal coalition that might be more influential together than they are in their separate parts. but it's going to be -- you think about an issue like keystone pipeline. what happens there? sierra club and the building trades have very different views on that issue.

so this is not going to be without i think turmoil ahead. but it is a pretty creative way to approach a big problem for labor unions. >> bill: absolutely. good for trumpka for having that vision. not easy but i think it is the way to go. susan, enjoy the weekend. >> you, too, bill. >> bill: thank you for joining us this morning. >> you bet. >> bill: talk to you again soon. susan page, washington bureau chief for "usa today," usatoday.com. >> announcer: download podcasts at billpressshow.com and listen any time, anywhere. this is the "bill press show." >> when she's talking, you never know where the conversation is going to go. >> it looks like anthony wiener is throwing his hat in the ring. >> his what in the ring? >> his hat. >> always outspoken, joy behar. >> and the best part is that current will let me say anything. what the hell were they thinking? >> only on current tv.

alright, in 15 minutes we're going to do the young turks. i think the number one thing that viewers like about the young turks is that we're honest. they know that i'm not bs'ing them with some hidden agenda, actually supporting one party or the other. when the

democrats are wrong, they know that i'm going to be the first one to call them out. they can question whether i'm right, but i think that the audience gets that this guy, to the best of his ability, is trying to look out for us. this show is about being up to date, staying in touch with politically and putting my own nuance on it. in reality it's not like they actually care. this is purely about political grandstanding.

>> announcer: taking your e-mails on any topic at any time, this is the "bill press show." live on your radio and current tv. >> bill: merlin. do you hear me? merlin, i'm calling you. all about barbara. barbara says bill, what have you done to my cat, merlin. every morning at 3:00, he meows and gets in my face and wakes me up. he does not shut up until i turn on your show. then he goes back to sleep. >> that's awesome. >> bill: he and his brethren are not fed until after 6:00 a.m. after the chickens are fed. do you send out a special cat alert that only cats can hear? >> good morning, merlin. >> bill: now they have our secret. we start out early in the morning and put out the cat alert. merlin!

[ ♪ theme ] >> bill: good morning, everybody. what do you say? it is friday, august 9. so good to see this friday roll around into the weekend we go. but first, lots to talk about here on the "full court press." welcome to the program and thank you for joining us. we look forward to hearing from you on the issues of the day. whatever we're talking about. give us your comments on the phone at 1-866-55-press. on twitter at bpshow and on

facebook at facebook.com/billpressshow. yes, indeed. lots going on this morning. so much that president obama has scheduled a news conference today. first of all, he's going to sign the student loan bill that passed with bipartisan majorities in both the house and the senate. they can get some things done. then again, he'll hold a news conference at 3:00 this afternoon, east coast time. you can expect -- i'll be there, by the way, you can expect lots of questions on nsa, questions on drones, questions on syria, questions on why he's giving the medal of freedom to oprah winfrey. she deserves it. but the president certainly will be asked about that. in other news, flap over at nbc over that mini series they plan on hillary clinton. on the air. both chuck todd and andrea mitchell have said they think it is a big mistake. in georgia, get this. georgia republicans say they think more highly of paula deen

than they do of martin luther king jr. who said racism is dead? that and more on current tv. marijuana looks like. (vo) with award winning documentaries that take you inside the headlines, way inside. (vo) from the underworld, to the world of privilege. >> everyone in michael jackson's life was out to use him. (vo) no one brings you more documentaries that are real, gripping, current. we have a big big hour and the iq will go way up. (vo) current tv gets the converstion started weekdays at 9am eastern. >> i'm a slutty bob hope. >> you are. >> the troops love me. (vo) tv and radio talk show host stephanie miller rounds out current's morning news block. >> you're welcome current tv audience for the visual candy.

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happen. >> watch the show. >> only on current tv. >> bill: president obama schedules a news conference for 3:00 this afternoon in the east room. i will be there. good morning, everybody. what do you say? here we go on a friday. friday, august 9. it is the "full court press." coming to you live all across this great country of ours. on your local progressive talk radio station and on current tv. good to see you this morning. thank you for joining us.

we look forward to hearing from you about what we're talking about, about the issues of the day. we'll let you know what's going on wherever it's happening here in our nation's capital, around the country, around the globe and of course, want to know what it means to you. give us a call at 1-866-55-press. join us on twitter and give us your comments on twitter at bpshow. that's our twitter handle at bpshow and on facebook for all of our friends, facebook.com/billpressshow. on a busy friday morning, we've got the entire team here in place. peter ogborn and dan henning. >> hey, hey. >> good morning. >> bill: alichia cruz has the phones covered. cyprian bowlding keeping us looking good on current tv. on the video cam. lights on, camera's on? >> so far, so good. >> bill: so far, so good. okay. you know, fridays, sometimes cyprian -- >> he starts partying a little early. >> bill: that's what i mean. he parties a little early.

>> lot of media news. sale of "the washington post" and that hillary documentary that's been getting a lot of flap. maybe. jeremy holden is all over that. he's a research director for media matters for america. our good friends do a great job. our good, progressive media watch dogs, jeremy, good morning. >> hey, bill. >> bill: thank you for coming in. you guys have been busy lately, pumping it out there, keeping on top of everything. >> we stay busy. >> bill: because we keep you busy. >> that's right. they give us a lot to work with. >> bill: it was a big day yesterday for the powerball. wednesday night. three winners as we mentioned yesterday. i won a modest $5. >> congratulations. i didn't know. >> bill: well, i wasn't one of the big three. >> when is your press conference? >> bill: right now. >> well, okay, i realize that.

>> bill: this is it. where is my check? spent $6, made $11. big winners, two from new jersey. we don't know who they were yet. paul white is the kind of guy you want to win the lottery. he's an engineer, 45 years old out in minnesota. he's very, very happy. he says i'm going to be able to help out my parents. >> still in decent health. they don't need my money per se or any help but i mean, imagine what it is like to say go pick out your own car. pick out your own house. >> bill: he says the big thing is he felt like this big huge weight on my shoulders is suddenly gone. i don't have to worry about anything anymore. >> am i going to be able to pay for my kids to go to college. am i going to be able to take care of them if they have health issues. all of these things gone. you don't have to worry about it again. it is amazing. >> has to be a good feeling. >> bill: buying a more expensive bottle of wine.

sure. don't worry about it. what the hell. with that money, you would be out of the money in a week. >> hope he has a financial planner. >> bill: that's what they all need. >> who needs one of those. >> bill: that should come with every lottery winner. should be built in when you buy your ticket, you get a contract, if you win, we're going to help you not blow it. >> but see, that's in their best interest. if he blows it, he'll keep playing the lottery. >> buying the more expensive bottle of wine is not blowing it, right? >> good point. we should clarify. >> bill: good way to go. >> bill: jeremy holden is here with us for the first half. we're going to be joined by eric burns also formerly with media matters, now head of bullfight strategies in the next hour here as a "friend of bill." and will dob beson joining us from -- dobson from slate joining us about the canceled putin summit.

first, dan has the big stories of the day. >> other headlines making news, staying on the lottery front, one of the tickets in new jersey was claimed yesterday as well. 16 government workers in new jersey came forward as holders of one of the winning powerball tickets. they work for the ocean county vehicle maintenance department. their identities have not been revealed according to "usa today." if they take the cash option, each winner will walk away with about $5.3 million before taxes. this is what happens when you split the lottery tickets. >> bill: you know what? that's more money than they would make in a lifetime. >> absolutely. >> bill: good for them. >> the love boat made its final voyage yesterday. according to "the hill," the pacific princess cruise ship cruised to a scrap yard in california after 42 years of service on the seas. it is ship where the love boat tv show was filmed on in the '70s and '80s which starred

former member of congress, fred grandy. >> bill: i was just thinking of fred grandy. >> i worked with fred grandy. >> absolutely. >> bill: at wmal and also on rl, retirement living tv. he used to be an anchor there. >> if you ever actually won a massive powerball jackpot, one thing you might be able to do is afford to buy the white house. real estate web site zillow.com after its on-line chat with president obama updated its listing of the executive mansion. while of course it is not for sale, its value estimated at $320 million. 55,000 square foot single family home with 16 bedrooms, 35 bathrooms, a finished basement that doubles as a bunker, home office space and a bowling alley among other extras. >> bill: wait a minute, not to mention 18 acres of prime real

estate. >> right in the heart of downtown washington, d.c. >> bill: and a garden. >> at 1600 pennsylvania avenue. >> bill: and a beehive. you can go on and on. >> brewing beer there. it is a microbrewery. >> bill: that's what i would do if i won the lottery. buy the white house. >> it is a little small. >> bill: i didn't know it had that many bedrooms. >> 16 bedrooms. >> bill: i wonder where they all are. >> in places you're not allowed to go. >> you won't find out either. >> bill: no, i guess not. jeremy, good to see you. media matters really surprised everybody this week when president david brock of media matters came out and said guess what. i agree with the chairman of the republican national committee. you know, that would never happen. >> didn't see that coming. this is where nbc has kind of put themselves, right. in this untenable position of

planning this hillary clinton mini series and really they're trying to capitalize on what they think is going to be a presidential run by the former secretary of state. and their decision to do this mini series has put them in this position where you know, we came out and said you know, reince priebus is right. that this decision is not -- is something that nbc should reconsider. it is not just us saying this. andrea mitchell, this is voices inside nbc news that say this is a nightmare that's been created. >> bill: in fact, maureen dowd also of "the new york times," her column, reince priebus is right. probably the first time she agreed with him on anything. >> bill: she's a big news figure, right? in politics today, she's one of the biggest success stories, first lady of arkansas, first

lady of the united states. united states senator from new york. secretary of state. almost won the democratic primary. isn't she worthy of a documentary? >> well, i don't think there's any question that she is a fascinating figure and one that people are interested in. the question is when nbc makes the decision to comoddfy this, what are the implications for nbc news. nbc can talk about the fire wall that exists but -- between news and entertainment certainly but they're now open to criticism from the right wing noise machine. we see that underway. all of their favorite pseudoscandals from the '90s and how are these going to be treated in this mini series. how are they going to be drama tized for maximum effect? how is this mini series going to be promoted on "the today show." does diane lane get an interview to help promote the show? >> bill: of course. >> that crossover creates problems. again, you don't have to go any further than people in nbc news

who are saying this creates a very uncomfortable situation for them because while this mini series is being written, being produced, being promoted, they also have to cover hillary clinton as a news figure. >> bill: what about cnn? same position on cnn and its plans to for cnn films, not cnn but cnn films to prepare a documentary that will be shown in movie theatres across the country next year. >> same questions, right. in some ways, even bigger questions. cnn has been largely silent about its plans and some of the criticism and scrutiny that they faced but you know, cnn has also made kind of overtures to reach out to more of a fox news audience, right? they've's said that it is fair to criticize them for not being conservative enough and not giving enough conservative voices, fair play on their channel so the fact that they're open to that type of criticism

raises serious questions about how they're going to put together a documentary about secretary of -- former secretary of state clinton. >> bill: what i think rings phony though about this whole thing is wouldn't you agree there is no doubt that reince priebus, his motivation has nothing to do with good journalism. yours does. chuck todd does. andrea mitchell does. his motivation is stopping hillary clinton. so by siding with him, aren't you, in effect, you know, helping him derail hillary? >> well, i think what we're doing is highlighting the fact that reince priebus has raised these objections and saying that this is the road you're walking down, by preparing the films, the documentary at cnn, mini series at nbc, you expose yourself to this type of

criticism, this type of feedback. is this what you want? is this what you want to bring on yourself? is it worth chasing the ratings to bring on this type of scrutiny. this is just the beginning of it. >> bill: by the way, we mentioned chuck todd here. you mention. here is chuck todd yesterday. yesterday morning on morning joe talking to mica. our viewers and listeners can hear chuck saying that he thinks this is a big mistake for nbc. >> this is why this mini series is a total nightmare for nbc news because it doesn't -- you know, we know there's this giant firewall. we know we have dmog to do with it. we would love to be as critical or whatever it is going to be if it comes out. but there's nothing we can do about it and we're going to only own the negative. because people are going to see the peacock and they say nbc and they see nbc news and they think they can't be that separate. >> bill: what if -- jeremy,

what if the documentary comes out and it's pretty critical of hillary? what if it is a negative documentary are your feelings the same? >> absolutely. they still open themselves up to satisfy the issue of how critical, how honest it is. what they're -- they're doing this because they think that hillary clinton is going to make a run for the white house. how do they then treat calls from republican candidates who want equal time? do they then have to do mini series or sequences of features on republicans who are seeking the white house, of other democrats that are running? this is a hornet's nest that cnn and nbc shouldn't want to go down. >> bill: i can't wait for the four hour mini series on ted cruz. >> the 999 lies of herman cain. >> i like that. >> bill: the michele bachmann, nutty as a fruitcake. >> right. but these are the types of

criticisms that they're bringing on themselves and to what gain? >> bill: got it. jeremy holden is with us. your comments and questions at 1-866-55-press. when we come back, you know, media matters has been in a war with fox news and now there is a big shake-up apparently coming in the fox news prime time for the first time in years and years and years. we'll talk about that here on the "full court press." stay with us. >> announcer: the "bill press show" is joining free speech tv. starting september 3rd. stay up to date by following us on twitter at bpshow. this is the "bill press show." >> only on current tv. >> that's hilarious! >> ...and the thinkers thinking. >> okay, so there's wiggle-room in the ten commandments is what you're telling me. >> she's joy behar. >> and current will let me

say anything. >> only on current tv.

cenk off air alright in 15 minutes we're going to do the young turks! i think the number 1 thing than viewers like about the young turks is that were honest. they know that i'm not bsing them for some hidden agenda, actually supporting one party or the other. when the democrats are wrong, they know i'm going to be the first one to call them out. cenk on air>> what's unacceptable is how washington continues to screw the middle class over. cenk off air i don't want the middle class taking the brunt of the

spending cuts and all the different programs that wind up hurting the middle class. cenk on air you got to go to the local level, the state level and we have to fight hard to make sure they can't buy our politics anymore. cenk off air and they can question if i'm right about that. but i think the audience gets that, i actually mean it. cenk on air 3 trillion dollars in spending cuts! narrator uniquely progressive and always topical, the worlds largest online news show is on current tv. cenk off air and i think the audience gets, "this guys to best of his abilities is trying to look out for us." only on current tv!

>> announcer: connect with the "bill press show" on twitter. follow us at bpshow and tweet using the hashtag watching bp. this is the "bill press show." >> bill: merlin. merlin. >> still with merlin the cat, huh? >> bill: i'm still with merlin the cat. 25 minutes after the hour now. jeremy holden from media matters for america, research director at media matters.org here in the studio with us. peter? we're talking all things media. yes, peter? >> yes, indeed. on twitter at bpshow, people are joining in the conversation on reince priebus and his comments about boycotting the debate. sam says let fox have the debates and all of the old white farthers who watch them will maybe have died off by 2016 and they won't have any viewers. wheezy says -- >> bill: the debates are not on nbc or cnn.

they'll be on fox, right? >> it seems likely. >> that seems like right. >> weiszy echoes that and says you should listen closely to what reince priebus says. he only wants supporters of the g.o.p. to be hosts of the debates. >> bill: his motives are not pure. let's say a quick hello to camilla down in atlanta, georgia >> caller: hi, bill, i think we shouldn't kowtow to reince priebus. every one of those candidates in 2012 used fox as their reality tv. sarah palin uses it constantly as reality tv. so they're playing on the low information voter to saying they can't differentiate and be intelligent enough to know nbc news is different from nbc entertainment. it is entertainment. there's a complete difference. fox news is not news. there is no fair imbalance there so of course they're going to make a big deal about it. >> bill: we got it. thanks, camilla. she mentioned fox news.

i want to ask you about that. so drudge, drudge is reporting that fox news has a big shake-up coming and that megan kelly is going to move into sean hannity's slot at 9:00. without telling us where sean hannity would go or what happens to the rest of the line-up, you guys have been following fox news more closely than anybody else. what's this all about? do you think this is going to happen? >> well, look, it seems likely, right. i mean fox has announced some time ago megan kelly would be moving into a prime time show. the question has always been -- where? that prime timelineup has been locked down for a decade now so drudge -- if drudge's reporting is to be believed, it will be that 9:00 slot which raises the question where does sean hannity go? does he move to 10:00? where does greta move next? megan kelly is somebody that we've kept a close eye on over

the years. she's been out there in front of the some of the largest right wing scandalmongering that we've seen, typical of fox news. she's also done some very good reporting, particularly on issues of women's rights, you know, fair pay type issues. so its agoing to be interesting to watch how she reacts to moving from what fox claims is the newshours during the day to what they look at as their opinion hours at night. what role does megan kelly play in that 9:00, what has historically been the sean hannity hour. >> bill: wasn't it erick erickson she ripped a new one? >> that's right. he was outraged there were so many female breadwinners. she really kind of said you know -- >> bill: she's tough and she's good. i think she would be a big success at 9:00. who knows. stay tuned. find out more if you follow mediamatters.org. jeremy, always good to see you.

thanks for coming in. >> thank you. >> announcer: this is the "bill press show."

>> bill: what do you say? 33 minutes now after the hour. it's friday, august 9. good to see you today. and again, want to quick comment before we move on about what's happening next week. and remember most importantly, we -- this is going to be a little change on the television side of things, okay. but let's not forget, we're a radio show. even when we're on tv, we are a

radio show. and that's what we do. and that's who we are. that's why we are so proud and happy to be on your local progressive talk radio station this early in the morning to start the line-up on progressive stations all across the country and nothing changes on that. nothing changes. we'll continue to be a radio show forever. >> you listen to us on -- one particular stage, revolution in nashville. >> bill: wcpt out in chicago. 92.1 in madison, we'll be there. we'll continue to be there. i was look -- start naming our affiliates, we'll be here all day. that doesn't change. on television, it doesn't change because they're pulling the plug on current as of next thursday. current goes away. but we're moving over to free speech tv on september 3rd. that's what's most important. go to freespeech.org. you can check out all of the

options. the options will be summing up here, twofold. you can watch online on your computer at freespeech.org or you can watch on your tv set if you've got a satellite dish and then you've got either the directv or dish network and we'll be on both of them. on free speech. free speech tv is on both of them. that's how you stay with us. the bill press radio show brought to you today by the laborer's international union of north america. we all work better under president terry o'sullivan building a better america. that's their web site. liunabuildsamerica.org. here's something you're going to want to comment on. love to get your take on this. first of all, polls, you know, i talked about this before. i'm sort of sick of polls because there are too many of

them and too many of them are meaningless. too many of them sometimes pollsters make up questions that they know -- they make up the questions only because they want to stir up trouble. >> sure. >> bill: no doubt about it. the public policy polling company, ppp, is one of the better polling companies around. they have certainly stirred up a lot of trouble with a poll they recently took in the state of georgia. in the state of georgia, they asked people what do you think of the following people here, for example. are you favorable or unfavorable about let's say -- how about -- let's see, georgia, okay. how about martin luther king jr.? okay. we'll get your comments on that. let's see. we want to ask you about somebody else who's famous. how about from georgia, how about jimmy carter? no, they didn't ask about him.

newt gingrich? no. how about paula deen. all right. yeah, there you go. >> okay. >> bill: so they asked people, what do you think, favorable opinion of martin luther king and paula deen. now, among democrats, among democrats, democrats for martin luther king, 83% favorable. dr. martin luther king jr. democrats for paula deen, 40% favorable. democrats are not into all of that buzz. but here is what made the news. has been making news. and i want to know what you think about this. among republicans, now, what's your opinion about paula deen versus dr. martin luther king jr.? whom i might add has his own memorial on the washington mall!

i have a dream. here it is. paula deen, among republicans in georgia, 73%. what do republicans in georgia think about martin luther king? 59% have a favorable opinion. who says racism is not dead? in the south? who says racism is not dead in georgia. and who says there are not still a lot of idiots in georgia. i mean to me, that is just embarrassing. it is appalling. it is shocking. maybe not so shocking. >> it is shocking. >> it is. >> having grown up in the south and gone to school in the south and spent a lot of time there, that is stunning. that is stunning that it is 2013 and -- paula deen and martin

luther king. >> bill: what should not even be in the same sentence together. seriously. let alone on -- not even on the same planet together. but the idea that given them side by side, you've got them standing, picture it, side by side. martin luther king jr. dr. martin luther king jr. on the steps of the lincoln memorial and paula deen with all of her racist comments and everything coming up lately, right? all right. let's have a little show of applause here. and it's not just that she wins. she wins. she crushes them. 73-59%. tell me what you think. what this says and you know what? god forbid, the thought would cross my mind. do you think it would be that different in other states in the south?

god, i would hope so. >> i'm with you. i hope so but i don't know. >> bill: other states around the country. i'm telling you, you know, we don't allow states to secede from the union but are we allowed to throw some states out? >> you know what? i mean -- now is a good time to think about it. >> bill: or maybe some people from some states out. again, 1-866-55-press. before we take a break, a quick call from chicago. joey, what do you think? isn't that appalling? joey. >> caller: good morning, bill. good morning, everybody. my father wasn't a smart man but did he tell me this one time, there will never be a shortage of dumb hillbillies, this poll proves it. i'll talk to you later, bill. >> bill: all right, joey. he always gets right to the point.

i think he just called. >> hillbilly. >> i'll have to take that. >> bill: with all of the comments about paula deen, didn't hurt her standing among republicans in georgia. >> on one hand, not to excuse any of that. paula deen is from georgia and she's sort of synonymous with georgia. everyone knows she's from there. so i don't know if you were to ask other southern states about her specifically. but i wonder if an iconic white figure from south carolina or mississippi or alabama -- >> bill: but she comes out -- less than a month ago, right. she comes out and uses the "n" word and planning this birthday party for her brother and she's going to have -- this will be cute. we'll have it like a plantation birthday party and all of the waiters will be black waiters all dressed up and yes, sir, this and yes, sir, that. and is dropped by all of her

sponsors. does she have anybody left? the book deal. she had a three-book deal. that was canceled. sponsors dropped her. she's in all of this trouble. yet she comes out, 73% positive compared to 59% among -- again, on republicans, in georgia. >> what i want to know is what's not to like about martin luther king? what's unfavorable about martin luther king? i can think of one thing that republicans in georgia find unfavorable. >> bill: i can, too. i guess maybe he doesn't make a mean enough peach pie. 1-866-55-press. let's talk about it here on the "full court press." >> announcer: get social with bill press. like us at facebook.com/billpressshow. this is the "bill press show." (christoff) we go and spend a considerable amount of time getting to know the people and the characters that are actually living these stories.

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>> announcer: live on free speech tv beginning september 3rd, learn all the details at billpressshow.com. this is the "bill press show." >> bill: all right. 14 minutes before the top of the hour here on a friday morning, august 9. here we go. hopscotching over the news of the day. on many fronts before we move into some other issues. a little appalled to find out that -- survey conducted by ppp among republicans in -- pardon me, in the state of georgia, 73% of them say they've got a favorable opinion about paula deen. only 59% have a favorable opinion of dr. martin luther king jr.

peter? >> we've got a couple of comments on twitter at bpshow. fred wilder says the only time i don't encounter racism, misogyny and general bigotry is when i don't leave my house. scary thought. rodeo gal says even hillbillies can learn. dana says in a country where shows like duck dynasty and the kardashians are huge hits is the deen king poll results hard to believe? you can chime in at twitter at bpshow. >> bill: they are hard to believe. there's some iconic figures you would think like george washington. abraham lincoln. martin luther king jr. put him up there. paula deen? michael's calling from chicago. hey, michael. >> caller: hey, bill, how you doing today? >> bill: i'm good. what do you think about this?

>> caller: well, you know, i have some family from the south and you know, i think one of the things that's going on here you know, i don't think the data necessarily represents or gives a full picture. paula deen reminds me of my aunt and my mom and just like my aunt and mom, they say a lot of stupid things that i wish they wouldn't have and they're embarrassing but you still love them anyway. i think what we're overlooking in the south is you know, we're talking about a people who -- sometimes the outrageous from xenophobic to we know who -- we identify with. paula deen in georgia, that's her home state. yeah, she's like everyone's mom there. so you know, they may still have a lot of the -- you know, dr. king, you know, he's different from them.

and i think we're -- reading -- we're reading something a tad bit extra into it. it may be something as simple -- >> bill: i think that's a good point. i understand that point. they do see them on a different plain. >> i get that. >> bill: reminding your aunt or grandmother. >> my grandmother is the sweetest woman in the world but racist. some of the things that came out of her mouth were terrible. but otherwise, just the sweetest woman in the world. i loved her to death but i didn't love that part of her. honestly, i'm more shocked -- not that people look at her favorably in that sense that more people view her favorably than martin luther king. >> bill: yeah. they see her as somebody -- remind you of a family and someone you want to give a hug to -- but still, excellent point but i don't think that excuses it. or makes it any less shocking to

me. andy is in fort worth, texas, what do you say? >> i think the overall story, it shows the effectiveness of the media's propaganda campaign to make people think a certain way and really it shows it is ineffective in certain parts of the country. and among certain hypocritical people as well. you know, now we hear that oprah winfrey suffered some sort of discrimination, details of which i'm sure we'll never hear over in switzerland of all places. so, you know, there have been more integration and togetherness among the races in the south than probably any other part of the country for the last 400 years. >> i hear you. but at the same time, i think the media did a pretty good job of beating up paula deen and

yet -- she still comes out in this poll. ahead of martin luther king jr. appreciate it, andy. kathy is in -- in duluth, georgia. >> okay. >> bill: hello, kathy. >> caller: hello, how are you? >> bill: all right. >> caller: i'm calling to comment about the martin luther king and his family, if you lived in georgia and had to put up with his family who are the most obnoxious people ever -- >> bill: ooh. >> caller: it is too bad. it reflects on him though. >> bill: you think that's what this is all about? i don't know. i don't see his family -- he's got one daughter who appeared at that glenn beck rally that i heard. her niece or cousin or something like that. other than that, i thought -- i haven't seen his family getting in a lot of trouble. >> no. >> bill: a lot of controversy.

>> caller: his family are a greedy bunch of -- they are -- they do not reflect him or his values. >> bill: i don't know about that, kathy. but all i gotta say is that should not mean that people think less of dr. martin luther king jr. his contribution, his legacy is well-known and it is real. and we're all better people because of it. and because of him. and for people of georgia, to think more highly of paula deen, i'm sorry. george is chiming in here now. i don't buy that at all. >> bill: i don't buy that at all. i think that's a pretty lame excuse for racism. susan calling from thomasville, georgia. hi, susan. >> caller: good morning, bill. >> bill: good morning.

>> caller: i'm originally from des moines, iowa. when i go home, i usually go home for the iowa state fair and my friends asked me why do people down there always vote against their own best economic interests. and i point out to them, the problem -- three problems, basically. i point out to them, difference in the educational system. >> bill: right. >> caller: i've never lived in a place where there's such disdain for teachers which is amazing to me. >> bill: ooh, that's bad. >> caller: the other aspect though which goes right along with the education is how often some of these really crack pot crazy conservative ideas are reinforced by their newspapers. we have a newspaper down here, my husband and i refer to it as "the hateful herald" because they run everything they can get their hands on about anything that is -- least bit progressive. >> bill: and the third point? >> caller: the other thing is -- plantation country. they're trying to get more

people to come down here to bring jobs. from my part of the country, they're not going to bring jobs if people can't read. i've had two friends and two relatives, all of whom are very wealthy businesspeople who were thinking about opening up operations here and they just looked around, read the newspaper and said man, are you kidding me? one guy said to me, he says hell, half my research and development department is married guys, people married to each other. he said i couldn't bring it down there. >> bill: all right, susan. that sheds some insights into what's happening down there in georgia. i'm sorry. i know there are a lot of great people in georgia but it is pretty appalling.

(cenk) it's go time! it's go time! it's go time! go time. you know what time it is. go time! it's go time. it's go time. what time is it rob? here comes the young turks go time! it's go time. oh is it? oh, then it's go time. anybody? anybody? what time is it? oh, right. it's go time! this show is about being up to date, staying in touch with everything that is going on politically and putting my own in reality it's not like they actually care. this is purely about political grandstanding.

>> announcer: follow us on twitter at bpshow. this is the "bill press show." >> bill: here we go. eric burns joins as a "friend of bill" in the next hour and we'll be joined by will dob beson of slate. president obama with a busy afternoon. briefing at 10:00 and then he'll be meeting with senior advisers. at 2:00, signing the student loan bill and then at 3:00, very exciting for the first time since april 30, he will be holding a news conference in the east room of the white house and i will be there. lots of challenging questions for the president today and then late this afternoon, he meets with secretary of state john kerry. back with eric burns for another hour of the "full court press."

>> announcer: this is the "bill press show."

[ ♪ theme ] >> bill: hey, good morning, everybody. it is friday. friday, august 9. great to see you today! on the full court press. welcome to the program. and we look forward to hearing from you. you know how it goes here. it is a two-way street. we'll tell you what's going on but you tell us what you think about it. and the way to do so is give us a call at 1-866-55-press. give us your comments on twitter at bpshow and on facebook at

facebook.com/billpressshow. big news today, he's going to sign the student loan bill which passed both houses with good bipartisan majorities. president obama will be holding his first news conference since april 30 in the east room of the white house today. you can expect lots of questions on syria, on drones, on the nsa, and maybe even on how come he's giving the medal of freedom to oprah winfrey. i'll be there. keeping on track of all of it for you. tell you all about it on monday. in other news, georgia republicans say they think more of paula deen than of dr. martin luther king jr. and chuck todd and andrea mitchell on msnbc have said that nbc is making a big mistake by planning a documentary on hillary clinton to run next year. an dr. sanjay gupta on cnn says

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if you believe in state's rights but still support the drug war you must be high. >> "viewpoint" digs deep into the issues of the day. >> do you think there is any chance we'll ever hear the president even say the word "carbon tax"? >> with an opened mind... >> has the time finally come for real immigration reform? >> ...and a distinctly satirical point of view. >> but you mentioned great leadership so i want to talk about donald rumsfeld. >> (laughter) >> cutting throught the clutter of today's top stories. >> this is the savior of the republican party? i mean really? >> ... with a unique perspective. >> teddy rosevelt was a weak asmatic kid who never played sports until he was a grown up. >> (laughter) >> ... and lots of fancy buz words. >> family values, speding, liberty, economic freedom, hard-working moms, crushing debt, cute little puppies. if wayne lapierre can make up stuff that sounds logical while making no sense... hey, so can i. once again friends, this is live tv and sometimes these things

happen. >> watch the show. >> only on current tv. nounce broadcasting across the nation on your radio and on current tv, this is the "bill press show." >> bill: president obama for the first time since april 30, calling a news conference today at the white house at 3:00 this afternoon. very, very exciting. i will put on my coat and tie and i will be there. good morning, everybody. great to see you this morning. on a friday. we love fridays around the "bill press show." i'm sure you love them, too, wherever you happen to be. every friday is a good friday on the "bill press show." we can't go into the weekend

yet. quite yet. we've got a lot to cover, a lot of stories that we haven't had a chance to get to so far this morning. that's why it is so good to have you with us. thank you for joining us on your local progressive talk radio station and thank you for joining us, those of who you are there still on current tv. we'll take your calls, look forward to your calls at 1-866-55-press. we want your comments, we want to hear from you on twitter at bpshow and on facebook at facebook.com/billpressshow. here to help us through this last hour as a "friend of bill," one of our favorite friends of bill, eric burns. we talked to media matters last week. he used to be president of media matters. now he's the cohead i should say -- i don't want karl frisch to get -- >> we're cofounders and partners. >> bill: eric burns of bullfight strategies. eric, you're looking good this morning. >> 20 pounds heavier this summer

i found out at the doctor yesterday but what are you going to do? >> bill: sounds like you're having a good time. >> lots of grilling out, you know. >> bill: our team -- peter? >> i'm insulted he left when i came in. >> bill: he was just here. >> he's not here. >> is he in the bathroom? >> bill: i don't want to know. actually, peter is on his way to florida to join his family so he had to take off. dan henning is here. still running the board. >> good morning. >> bill: alichia cruz, is she still here? >> she doesn't leave early. >> your workers are going to sneak away on you. >> she doesn't slack off. >> bill: are we still on camera? is cyprian here? >> where did he go? his chair is empty. out how he do that? the buttons are touching themselves. >> where is clint eastwood? >> bill: this place is out of control. cyprian bowlding is somewhere in the building running the video cam. eric, big day yesterday for the

u.s. postal service. new stamp celebrating something and all americans should celebrate and that is made -- made in america. made in america stamp which i think is a great idea. >> as long as i hope it is made in america. >> exactly. >> we trust the postal service. >> bill: our good friend, he was here right in your chair, monday morning, the new labor secretary, secretary of labor, tom perez who unveiled the stamp yesterday. >> this series depicts americans at work. maintaining railroads, leaving garments -- weaving garments, mining coal and so much more. these are iconic images that really do tell a powerful story about american strength and prosperity. >> bill: something we can all celebrate. >> we need -- this is exactly the kind of thing that we need to be talking about. talking about workers in america and the working man and woman in this country that are the backbone of this economy --

let's celebrate. >> bill: things made by americans for americans. it is great. i'm going to buy a mess of them to help the cause today. >> when i need a stamp, i'm coming to you. >> bill: made in america. eric burns is here as a "friend of bill" and then will dobson will be joining us. he's from slate, of course. one of our foreign policy gurus here on the "full court press" to talk about the summit that almost happened but now ain't gonna be. but first... >> announcer: this is the "full court press." >> other headlines making news on this friday. eight in ten americans say congress does not deserve the five-week recess that it is currently in. now in their second week, it is a fox news poll done in collaboration with two firms to make it somewhat equal. democratic and republican polling firm. they both agree the respondents that congress should not have the long vacation but when asked about the president president's

one-week vacation, 48% said he deserves it. 48% said he does not deserve it. breaking that down, 80% of democrats say the president deserves a vacation. 23% of republicans say he does. >> more fox newsers think obama deserves a vacation than their own republican leadership in the house. memo to fox news, you might not be republican. >> bill: i don't know what's wrong with the 2% of americans who think that congress does deserve a break. for what? what have they done? nothing. >> nothing! and if the president ever gets a vacation, even when he's on vacation. >> bill: these are the same people who six years ago, when president bush would go to texas for five weeks, right, on the ranch and do nothing as we know, nothing from when he's warned that al-qaeda may be striking the united states, he still does nothing. oh, well, he's president, he works so hard. of course he deserves a break.

and obama, president obama goes for one week with his family to martha's vineyard and they raise hell about it. it is ridiculous. >> there is a reason for that. it is because of what you saw with reagan in the western white house in california. they did the same thing with crawford. it was like the -- the western white house -- they had the same moniker, little mints on air force i you can get like the white house in an extent ya. thankfully obama hasn't tried to pull over on folks. >> the white house announced president obama will honor 16 people with the presidential medal of freedom for contributions to society in upcoming ceremony. recipients including former president bill clinton, also oprah winfrey, the late hawaii senator daniel inouye and ben bradley, the former "washington post" editor who oversaw the

watergate scandal coverage. dick lugar as well. >> bill: this is a great list. >> sally ride is on there, too. >> why aren't you on there, bill press? >> bill: some day. some day. >> in sports -- >> bill: i hope it's not posthumous. because i want to be there. to get that damn medal. >> in sports, the pga tour championship got underway in rochester, new york, yesterday with jim furyk and adam scott tying for the lead after the first round. both shooting an impressive 5 under par. 65. tiger wood in the hunt for his 15th major championship shot a one over 71. he missed a few crucial birdie putts because he was rushed when his group was put on the clock for playing too slow. so they started -- the official started timing him. said speed it up and you have like -- there's actually a rule in the rule book, i believe it is five minutes per shot. they had to --

>> is tiger woods known as a slow player? or was he with the ladies? >> bill: why haven't they enforced it? >> if you're playing too slow, people throw golf clubs at you and all kinds of stuff. not in the majors but -- not in the pga but -- when i go play golf, that's what happens. >> bill: oh, my god. where do we start, eric, so much stuff going on. it is a fun news day. still a lot of flap about the plans by -- you used to be at media matters. jeremy holden was in studio from media matters last hour. >> very good man, yes. >> bill: the flap over plans by nbc to air this documentary about hillary clinton, four-part mini series about hillary and then cnn making a documentary about hillary. both of which are planned to come out next year. planned to run next year.

it was pretty striking yesterday, if we can, dan, on morning joe, chuck todd, political director for nbc news, came out and attacked -- or criticized at least his own network. here's chuck dod. >> this is why this mini series is a total nightmare because it doesn't -- you know, we know there's this giant fire wall. we know we have nothing to do with it. we know we would love to be as critical or whatever it is going to be if it comes out. but there's nothing we can do about it and we're going to only own the negative. because people are going to see the peacock and they see nbc and they see nbc news and they think "well, they can't be that separate." >> bill: so they're going to say nbc,msincomes, already in bed with hillary so no objectivity at all. >> that's what the right wing is saying. i think the converse of it is there are people on the left that aren't happy about this either. i think david brock, who my

former colleague and boss at media matters is one of them. you know, because really, i think back to -- remember the path to 9-11 that abc did that horrible mockumentary about the attempt to go after bin laden that was just rife with factual errors. this isn't even a mockumentary or -- not a mockumentary but a docudrama. this is just a mini series. it is like a thorn birds. we have no idea what they're going to say. but what is salacious is what sells. it is being done by nbc entertainment, i think that is a problem for nbc news. it is going to be a problem for cnn because erin burnett just had a special on cnn about the whole benghazi nonscandal scandal and it was a disaster. i watched it just this last week. i felt like it was something that could have been edited by news max. >> bill: there's no doubt -- i really see that the problem with a network appearing to take -- to be taking sides and airing

this, i do think it would certainly give the appearance of taking sides. at the same time, there's no doubt that reince priebus and the rnc, their objection is not because they're trying to defend good journalism. >> oh, no. >> bill: they just don't want to run against hillary. they're afraid it will paint hillary in a good light and they have nobody who could possibly beat her. >> they want to try to influence what the product at nbc is going to put out to make sure it has, you know, their perspective, whether or not it is based, in fact, which generally, it's not. included in the mini series and the people that watch this generally are going to watch this and think that it's true. there is a lot of artistic license when you talk about a mini series. >> bill: what do you think nbc does? >> i think that nbc needs to not do this. i don't think there's any good to come of it. i think especially when -- if it is a broad biopic on hillary clinton and incredible career

she's had, that's one thing but you know, i think that the news folks needs to be engaged and involved because chuck dodd is right. it will affect the nbc news brand. >> bill: you know what? big ratings. >> that's what it is really about, right? when we're talking about somebody who is a likely candidate for president. >> particularly her. >> nbc should tread carefully. i disagree with chuck dodd. if he keeps talking about it, i think that there is something they can do about it. >> bill: wheel we're talking about the networks, the drudge report, matt drudge announcing yesterday according to his sources, he says, the first shake-up in the fox news prime time line-up in ten years. >> this is a big deal. >> bill: because roger ailes, one thing he does is he puts people in their place and he leaves them there and people get used to them and they build

their audience. you have a huge succession of hannity at 9:00 and greta at 10:00 according to drudge, happen set going away at 9:00 and megan kelly -- we were told earlier she'll have a prime time position on fox. everybody was saying where, where? drudge is saying she will go at 9:00. do you think this will happen number one. what happens to sean hannity? >> well, you know -- >> bill: they're not going to throw him away. >> he's a popular brand on fox news. unfortunately, sean hannity is just kind of like a walking teletype for rnc. >> bill: republican national committee. >> serial misinformer. very damaging figure in terms of natural discourse. megan kelly, i think has proven herself to be a bit of a maverick at fox news. she's standing up for the rights of women and call some of her

colleagues and other folks out for making sexist comments and kind of going after -- she even called the war on women but it is a war on women from the right. this might be a response by roger ailes in understanding going into 2016, they can't be seen as the white male middle-aged network. >> bill: she's a good talent and i think she'll do remarkably well at 9:00. then again, does that mean -- we're speculating here but sean hannity takes greta's place? he's not going to take o'reilly's place. like in the afternoons? what's going on? >> look, it is a good question. i think this could be a test balloon. you know. to just kind of see what kind of a reaction they get and who knows. there may be some contract shake-ups that they're trying -- >> bill: everybody was listening to hear what sean hannity might have to say about it. didn't say anything that i know of on television.

on the radio, yesterday afternoon, he sort of made fun of these people. he says who are talking about this without knowing what they're talking about. >> you know what? i'm actually enjoying people and -- that really don't know a whole lot, just going nuts. so i'm going to leave it there. just for fun. and this is -- these comments will be picked up now. hannity says he's leaving it out there to figure it out. let's just say in the end, i'm very happy. that's all i can say at this point. >> the translation there for somebody, he's very concerned about this. and he doesn't want to admit it. he pulls the old rush limbaugh line. this is fun. are you kidding? i don't care. nothing they can do to me which means he's terrified. >> bill: he's sitting there thinking why hasn't roger ailes returned my calls? i called him before the show. >> he's screaming at his staff in between segments. get me roger ailes on the phone. >> bill: did roger call me

back yet? he's checking his phone. >> if they pulled sean hannity somehow off the prime time line-up, that would be a victory for journalism in this country. >> bill: eric burns, there it is. bullfight strategies. your calls. join the conversation at 1-866-55-press on a friday. lots more coming up on the "full court press." stay up to date by following us on twitter at bpshow. this is the "bill press show." laughing... >> that's hilarious! >> ...and the thinkers thinking. >> okay, so there's wiggle-room in the ten commandments is what you're telling me. >> she's joy behar. >> and current will let me say anything. >> only on current tv.

cenk off air alright in 15 minutes we're going to do the young turks! i think the number 1 thing than viewers like about the young turks is that were honest. they know that i'm not bsing them for some hidden agenda, actually supporting one party or the other. when the democrats are wrong, they know i'm going to be the first one to call them out. cenk on air>> what's unacceptable is how washington continues to screw the middle class over. cenk off air i don't want the middle class taking the brunt of the spending cuts and all the different programs that wind up hurting the middle class. cenk on air you got to go to the local level, the state level and we have to fight hard to make sure they can't buy our politics anymore.

cenk off air and they can question if i'm right about that. but i think the audience gets that, i actually mean it. cenk on air 3 trillion dollars in spending cuts! narrator uniquely progressive and always topical, the worlds largest online news show is on current tv. cenk off air and i think the audience gets, "this guys to best of his abilities is trying to look out for us." only on current tv!

>> announcer: connect with the "bill press show" on twitter. follow us at bpshow and tweet using the hashtag watching bp. this is the "bill press show." >> bill: here we go. 26 minutes after the hour. lots to talk -- lots of talk yesterday at the briefing about the summit that was scheduled. not officially scheduled but they were preparing for it. then canceled with vladimir putin. will dobson will join us from slate to talk about that. eric burns is here as a "friend of bill" this entire hour. eric, from -- cofounder of bullfight strategies. so, we're talking media. dr. sanjay gupta of cnn made a lot of noise yesterday when he came out and admitted to piers morgan he was wrong about medical marijuana. here he is. >> i have. as part of my thinking, i have apologized to some of the earlier reporting because i think we've been terribly and systematically misled in this country for some time. i did part of that misleading.

>> bill: he was just saying -- he didn't do his research on medical marijuana. he was wrong. it is perfectly okay. >> congratulations to sanjay gupta for actually turning out and saying that. perhaps he should have done it sooner. but you have to wonder if maybe somebody slipped him, you know, a -- no, i don't know. but i think it's -- i think all of the studies have shown for a long time that this is clearly a good thing for a lot of people and you know, i think -- for sanjay gupta to be out on the lead on this is good. i want to see dr. oz say the same thing. >> bill: i wish he had done it a lot sooner. there are 20 states that allow medical marijuana plus the district of columbia. there would be more if there hadn't been for some people. >> i saw you hanging out by popeye's fried chicken and the new dispensary. >> bill: waiting for it to

open. >> announcer: this is the "bill press show."

>> announcer: live on free speech tv beginning september 3rd, visit freespeech.org to learn more. this is the "bill press show." >> bill: hey, here we go. 33 minutes after the hour now on the -- on this friday. august 9. great to see you today. it is "full court press." we're coming to you live from our nation's capital and our studio on capitol hill, we're brought to you today by the american federation of teachers, the good men and women of the aft under president randi weingarten making a difference in the classrooms of america every day. you bet. even during the summer months.

we salute them. thank them for their support of the program. and are glad to welcome back to the program, eric burns, first of all here as a "friend of bill" this entire hour. and eric and i are joined by will dob beson, good friend of ours from slate politics and foreign affairs editor. president obama is going to sweden. how about that. >> yes. >> bill: he's going to sweden on the 4th of september because he canceled his trip to moscow to where they were planning a meeting with sort of a summit with president vladimir putin. is he doing the right thing? did he do the right thing by canceling? >> absolutely. there was really nothing but optics in trying to move on this at this point because there's nothing to talk about when the

other side just says -- again and again and again. the white house has been putting forward proposals and moscow doesn't respond to them anymore. and really, you know, moscow is sort of trying to paint this as the fact that somehow the obama administration isn't interested in russian relations anymore, snubbing putin. but, in fact, the snub goes the other way. the relationship was actually quite good footing while medvedev was the president but since the return of putin, we've seen a spiral and it really has everything to do with putin and not american domestic politics but russian domestic politics. >> bill: if the president says one of my priorities is to reset our relations with russia, how can you reset relations if you're not willing to sit down and talk? >> how can you reset relations if the other side doesn't want to? you can't. it takes two to even do that. so i mean he had hopes to do that. but you know, how many times can you sort of come to the table and find out that there's really

no -- the last time they met, they had a side meeting a little while ago, putin said you know, i'm tired of the intrusive -- basically everything we have to talk about that would be any form of bilateral cooperation. so syria, arms control. human rights, basically the list of things we have that are in discord or in disagreement, have grown. there's nothing left to agree on so why give him the audience? >> will, my understanding for these visits to putin are important for him domestically to really kind of ledgity mize his authoritarian regime in russia. so in essence, maybe this is obama playing hardball with him saying we're not going to play into your hands, you know. we're going to make you suffer a little bit and make you come back to the table. is that a fair assessment?

>> i think that's a fair assessment. it is also true that putin can spin this to his advantage as well to see look, i don't need this american president and you know, i wasn't going to sell russia down the river, you know. so we don't need them. this is sort of a brave russian front to this american intrusion. and that's very much the way that he has cast the united states since his return. he kicked out u.s. aid organizations. he's been cracking down on human rights. the last 12 months, the biggest crackdown on ngos and human rights organizations in russia since the end of the cold war. so he very much has been trying to vilify the united states so he will be able to work -- see, i told you so -- but at the end of the day, there was more for him to gain in this than for a president who wanted to try to accomplish something. >> bill: all right but it seems to me, 500 pound elephant in the room here that you're not talking about that. i'm not talking about maybe and that is mr. edward snowden.

i tried to poke through this with the white house -- at the white house yesterday with jay carney. my question -- >> everything seemed to be on track until the snowden report. are you telling us today that even without edward snowden, there would still be no summit? >> i'm saying that mr. snowden was a factor but if there were and have been for some time now, a number of issues that had caused us to assess the utility of holding a summit at this time. >> bill: that's the white house spin. isn't this all about edward snowden? >> i really don't think it is. i think snowden -- >> bill: you think they would still have canceled the summit? >> i think snowden is sort of the straw that broke the camel's back. i think that much is true. it is the case of the administration, was trying to see -- to sort of plumb what could be done. if they thought there was something that could be done, it

would have gone forward. but once -- once snowden's granted asylum and u.s. officials found out the same time that u.s. media found out. there was -- the russians bent over backwards to really stick it to the administration. so i think, you know, it is -- one turn gets another. >> look, as a political consultant, my read of this initially was you know, clearly the president was not going to not have the united states involved in the olympics as was kind of initially kind of floated. once snowden was provided asylum. and so you know, they put that out there. he has to do something. this became a natural fallback. we'll go to the g-20 and the olympics but we aren't going to meet with you. >> bill: we are going to the olympics. >> i don't think the olympics are off. russia has backed down on this saying we're not going to

enforce our new anti-gay laws against athletes. even the russians admit that oh, gosh, even the things we do when nobody is here is too awful to do when the community is there because they don't want to do anything to risk their olympics either. which is just -- a side show unto itself. >> bill: okay. i just have to ask you one other question. because in the car the other night, listening to the newshour on pbs. i don't really know who this speaker was. he was a russian though. i think he's now an american citizen. he was explaining, he said you have to see this from -- snowden from our point of view. here's the deal. snowden wasn't coming to moscow because he wanted to come to moscow. he was going there to come to havana. the united states finds out he's in moscow on the way to havana. we went to the cuban government, even though we have lousy relations with cuba, we said don't let this guy in. cuba said you're not welcome.

here's snowden in moscow. they didn't ask for him. they're stuck with him and so he said before he had been there like six hours and already the secretary of state is saying this could badly damage relations with the soviet union. chuck schumer is out on tv saying you know, let's just not cooperate with russia on anything at all. suddenly, they're getting hammered for something they had nothing to do with. and then with all of that, they said okay, well, screw you. we'll give him asylum. >> it took them a long time to get to the decision to give he him asylum. how long has he been living at the airport doing his laun -- >> venezuela said we'll take him. >> bill: what if a russian had come over here. do you think we would have sent him back? >> i think that's the best thing the russians could be saying. there is no way we would send him back. >> bill: no way. >> that's a completely fair point. absolutely. there's no way. >> bill: do you think maybe -- >> but there is a difference. an important difference. important difference is that we

would actually have him go through a legal process. this is entirely and utterly a political decision in the case of russia. we're talking about a democracy and something that's far less than a democracy. >> bill: would you agree that maybe we have overreacted to edward snowden? >> it is a good question. we certainly -- there's no question that we have -- we have shown how much he got under our skin. we've -- we have not -- i mean the biggest mistake we made was not canceling the passport while he was still in hong kong. what the state department was doing that weekend is unclear but there were many ways that we should have been trying to contain him rather than just going to the microphone to say how angry we were and how unacceptable this was. >> bill: i've got a friend who works in national security who told me that -- he said you don't have to worry about this. they've already canceled his passport. i was stunned that they didn't do it. >> stunning. >> bill: by the way, it broke. he said his passport is done. >> it wasn't. >> my question is why

wouldn't -- especially if venezuela is willing to take snowden, why wouldn't putin just shim him on out? ship him on out to venezuela. >> bill: because there are no nonstop flights from moscow to venezuela. he's got to go through somewhere. >> i think there is a layover in tehran. >> bill: is that right? >> there is a flight every week from tehran to caracas. >> bill: there is? you watch, snowden will be on that flight. before long. i don't think he will be in russia long. >> i agree. >> bill: we didn't get to yemen yet or the big terror threat, 19 embassies still closed. we didn't get to syria. so let's take a quick break and come back with will dobson and eric burns. >> announcer: follow us on twitter at bpshow. this is the "bill press show."

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>> announcer: this is the "bill press show." >> bill: 13 minutes before the top of the hour. we're covering the foreign policy front this half hour with will dobson from slate and eric burns here from bullfight strategies as a "friend of bill." will, we had heard -- i've heard the president say al-qaeda, we got them on the run. on the run. now suddenly last week or this week, they're on the rise. we've shut down 19 embassies. so which is it? on the run or on the rise? >> well, i mean -- >> bill: is the threat for real? >> you know, everyone who has seen the intelligence, we had

this weird sort of beginning of bipartisanship where republicans and democrats when they both see the intelligence say yes, this is the right decision. you feel that -- in this town now, if republicans thought the president was trying to play politics, they would call him out on it. but you've had uniform reaction to the administration's decision to do this. so we don't know what that is precisely but it seems to be strong enough of an indication that they say okay, this is a good call. what does this do? what degree is this helpful besides maybe a defensive measure to sort of protect u.s. personnel. also overnight, we heard that they were -- having -- advising americans not to go to pakistan which they say is a separate threat than the threat that has been in yemen. in the case of yemen, that has been the wing of al-qaeda that has remained most intact. that has -- you know, that is considered to be the highest

threat from the remnants of al-qaeda. and the intelligence was that in recent weeks, they've had sort of a growing, you know, conference of al-qaeda, if you will, showing up in sauna. sauna is a place where anti-americans -- it is a perfect area for al-qaeda to be able to move freely. you've had an enormous increase. an enormous increase in the last year of foreign journalists being kidnapped there. many instances, it is just for ransom but it is militant groups there who are trying to raise money. so there is a german couple, both reporters who have been held now for weeks and many others. so it is a very unsafe part of the world. the poorest country in the middle east and so it is a natural staging ground. our presence there really has been in the form of drone strikes. and in these last few days, we've seen reports of one drone strike after another which is in large part, could be a by-product of closing these

embassies which is throwing off their timing and trying to buy us time to strike before they do. >> bill: i think the thinking behind the drone strikes is if we keep those up and they're worried about -- they've got their eyes in the sky, they don't have so much time to be planning and plotting and making bombs, right? >> right. >> bill: we makes sense. but yemen now says well, we disrupted this plan to take over port area and destroy pipeline. that was the threat that they were talking about. so yemen is saying we uncovered it. we've taken care of it. it is over. but our embassies are still closed. >> the probability that -- i mean we have to sort of go back to sort of the record and what we know -- what has happened there before and make an educated guess. there is a good chance that the authorities in yemen aren't really responsible for disrupting that threat.

there is a good chance that -- in fact, the united states has a lot to do with that and we'll let them go out and take credit for it because they always have to walk is why are you letting americans in our midst. for the population of yemen, how do they feel about things falling from the sky all the time? i mean they don't feel great about it. and so it is an unpopular decision that the government has made but we've been able to buy off the government there to allow -- >> bill: it is not a strong government. hardly, right? >> at all. it was one of the epicenters of protests in the arab spring and salahi, their former dictator had to leave. so it is a young government trying to get off its feet. it works well for us in terms of being able to work with a relatively free hand but i think there is a good chance that -- and in the past, there have been instances where we have actually struck militant groups and the government there has come forward and taken credit for it with our blessing. so this wouldn't be the first

time that that happened. >> my question is at what point is the administration going to feel comfortable and republicans in congress going to feel comfortable saying okay, yeah, let's reopen the embassies and consulates because there's no longer a threat. i don't know that we're going to see that happening. would this even be happening if we didn't have the right wing hyperventilating over the nonscandal that is benghazi? >> you know, there's no question benghazi shapes the domestic politics here. i think that this is probably more of a security decision than a political decision on the part of the administration. i think that they look at this and they say well, one, we have four positions that are exposed. and we don't want -- we don't want these people to be in harm's way. so you want to -- you want your administration to be sort of pro-active about taking the steps and so you know, i think also on the top of that, there is a realization after libya that since some instances, some

of the installations are insecure. so it could very well be the case some of the cases have not been properly secured in the period of time since benghazi. i have to say i find that hard to believe just because in my travels around the region, u.s. embassies are like fortresses these days. and so -- but nevertheless, you know -- they're warning u.s. citizens not to travel to these areas as well. so you know, they -- the reports are that they -- there has been a lot of, as they say, chatter, and the threats seemed real enough to take this step. so, now, if you're a terrorist, why don't you just wait until -- set your clock until monday. perhaps. but you know, at some point, we'll have to open them -- i imagine we'll see tighter security for awhile to come. >> bill: well, you know, a lot of the questions will come up this afternoon with president obama at the white house. at the briefing. at 3:00 this afternoon. so we'll maybe learn some more about it then.

will dobson, always great to see you. thanks for coming in. safe travels today. eric burns, great to see you. you're not going quite as far as isen -- istanbul. >> congratulations on free speech tv. >> bill: moving september 3rd. i will be back with today's parting shot. >> announcer: go mobile with bill press. download podcasts at billpressshow.com and listen any time. anywhere. this is the "bill press show."

you know who's coming on to me now? you know the kind of guys who do like verse mortgage commercials? those types are coming on to me all the time now. >> she gets the comedians laughing... >> that's hilarious! >> okay, so there's wiggle-room in the ten commandments is what you're telling me. >> you would rather deal with ahmadinejad then me. >> absolutely! >> and so would mitt romeny. >> she's joy behar. >> and the best part is that

current will let me say anything. what the hell were they thinking? >> only on current tv. i think the number one thing that viewers like about the young turks is that we're honest. they can question whether i'm right, but i think that the audience gets that this guy, to the best of his ability, is trying to look out for us. >> announcer: the parting shot with bill press. this is the "bill press show." belle well, the latest fox news

poll shows that eight out of ten americans think congress does not deserve a five-week break and no wonder! for the last seven months, congress managed to pass a total of 23 bills of which only five were substantive. listen to this, other bills included a bill to name a new bridge over the mississippi. the stan musial bridge. a bill to rename a section of the tax code after former senator kay bailey hutchison and a bill to clarify the size of mental blanks used by the baseball hall of fame in minting gold and silver commemorative coins. they accomplished so little that john boehner says judge us not by how many bills we've passed but by how many bills they've repealed like voting to repeal obamacare 40 times even though they never succeeded in repealing it. now they're home on vacation. maybe they just ought to stay there. hey, folks, have a great weekend!

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